At least 78 killed, 329 injured in Israeli strikes: Iranian media
Fars News Agency said the exact death toll will be announced later by official authorities.
Iran announced that Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Baqeri, Chief Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Hossein Salami, and other military and civilian figures have been killed in Israeli strikes in Tehran on Friday.
Blasts
In a related development, the Iranian Mehr News Agency reported this afternoon that several loud blasts were heard in the cities of Kermanshah and Hamadan, western Iran, near the Nojeh Air Base.
Iranian mission at the United Nations
Meantime, the Iranian mission at the United Nations has called for an urgent Security Council meeting after Israel conducted airstrikes on some Iranian nuclear sites and civilian areas early on Friday.
According to state-run news agency (IRNA), Iran - in a letter to the UNSC - also called for an UNSC emergency meeting to condemn Israel's attack on nuclear facilities and civilian areas.
Iran's mission also denounced the Israeli attack as a clear violation of the UN Charter, warning that its dangerous consequences jeopardise regional and international peace and security.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Dubai Eye
3 hours ago
- Dubai Eye
Israel says Gazans free to leave as Hamas negotiates ceasefire
Hamas' chief negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya held talks with Egyptian mediators over a potential ceasefire in the Gaza war on Wednesday while Israel struck the territory's main city prior to a planned takeover and again invited Palestinians to leave. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated an idea that Palestinians should simply leave the enclave housing more than 2 million people after nearly two years of conflict. "They're not being pushed out, they'll be allowed to exit," he told Israeli television channel i24NEWS. "All those who are concerned for the Palestinians and say they want to help (them) should open their gates and stop lecturing us." Arabs and many world leaders have expressed shock at the idea of displacing the Gaza population, which Palestinians say would be like another "Nakba" (catastrophe) when hundreds of thousands fled or were forced out during a 1948 war. Israel's planned re-seizure of Gaza City - which it took in the early days of the war before withdrawing - is probably weeks away, officials say. That means a ceasefire is still possible though talks have been floundering and conflict still rages. Israeli planes and tanks bombed eastern areas of Gaza City heavily, residents said, with many homes destroyed in the Zeitoun and Shejaia neighbourhoods overnight. Al-Ahli hospital said 12 people were killed in an airstrike on a home in Zeitoun. Tanks also destroyed several houses in the east of Khan Younis in south Gaza too, while in the centre, Israeli gunfire killed nine aid-seekers in two separate incidents, Palestinian medics said. Israel's military did not comment. Hamas' Al Hayya's meetings with Egyptian officials in Cairo on Wednesday were to focus on stopping the war, delivering aid and "ending the suffering of our people in Gaza," a Hamas official said in a statement. CEASEFIRE POSSIBILITIES Egyptian security sources said the talks would also discuss the possibility of a comprehensive ceasefire that would see Hamas relinquish governance in Gaza and concede its weapons. A Hamas official told Reuters the group was open to all ideas if Israel pulls out. However, "Laying down arms before the occupation is dismissed is impossible," the official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. Netanyahu's plan to expand military control over Gaza, which Israeli sources said could be launched in October, has heightened global outcry over the widespread devastation, displacement and hunger in the enclave. About half of Gaza's residents live in the Gaza City area. Foreign ministers of 24 countries, including Britain, Canada, Australia, France and Japan, said this week the humanitarian crisis in Gaza had reached "unimaginable levels" and urged Israel to allow unrestricted aid. Israel denies responsibility for hunger, accusing Hamas of stealing aid. It says it has taken steps to increase deliveries, including daily combat pauses in some areas and protected routes for aid convoys. The Israeli military on Wednesday said that nearly 320 trucks entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings and that a further nearly 320 trucks were collected and distributed by the U.N. and international organizations in the past 24 hours along with three tankers of fuel and 97 pallets of air-dropped aid. The United Nations and Palestinians say aid entering Gaza remains far from sufficient. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas stormed into southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Israel's offensive against Hamas in Gaza since then has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials.
Middle East Eye
4 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Number of Palestinian detainees is highest in 25 years
The number of Palestinians held in Israeli jails has reached the highest since the Second Intifada in 2000, the Palestinian Prisoners Information Office announced on Wednesday. The organisation said the number of detainees for August was 10,800 people, including 49 women, and more than 450 children. It added that more than a third - 3,613 people - are being held without charge or trial, the highest figure recorded to date.
Middle East Eye
4 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Israel destroys 300 homes in Gaza City and kills entire families
The Israeli military have destroyed more than 300 homes and killed families living there in a three-day assault on Zeitoun, one of the largest neighbourhoods in Gaza City, Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday. Gaza's Civil Defence officials said entire families were killed without warning when their homes were blown up using bombs that were so powerful they also levelled surrounding buildings. In addition, rescue crews were blocked from reaching injured people or recovering dead bodies. The non-stop bombardment and destruction of Zeitoun neighbourhood first started on Tuesday. The assault is part of Israel's plans to seize control of Gaza City and forcefully expel around one million residents southwards in violation of international law.
